


Courting Miss Flint

by IspeakfortheQueen



Category: Doctor Who & Related Fandoms
Genre: Canon Lesbian Relationship, Cultural Differences, F/F, Interspecies Romance, Minor Violence, Pre-Relationship, tw gore
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-11-24
Updated: 2016-01-06
Packaged: 2018-02-26 20:33:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,189
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2665445
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IspeakfortheQueen/pseuds/IspeakfortheQueen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Vastra attempts to woo Jenny in more ways than one.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Heart and the Head

**Author's Note:**

> I was lurking through Tumblr and found a thread about Neve McIntosh (Madame Vastra) saying in an interview that Vastra initially tried to court Jenny "the Silurian way" before trying to do it "the Human way." Assuming that Silurians had as many complex courtship rituals as the Victorians (which for the sake of this story, I'm sure they did), there are lots of fun ideas to work off of.
> 
> Warnings for this chapter: Slight gore.

Vastra's grin is hidden beneath the hood of her cloak as she walks past the neat row of houses to her own on Paternoster Row. She is pleased with herself. Not only has tonight provided a successful hunt, but she has also found a very meaningful gift to present Jenny with. She hurries up the steps to Number 13, eager to both remove herself from the early December air and to see Jenny's reaction to the gift. 

As it is, it is three o' clock in the morning and Jenny is fast asleep. Vastra creeps to the back of the house to the servant's quarter that Jenny insists on sleeping in, even though Vastra has offered her the much larger guest bedroom upstairs. Vastra stares at the door for a few moments, wondering if she should wake the girl up. In traditional Silurian form, it would be best to hand the gift to her desired mate directly, but exceptions can be made if the item is acquired so late in the night. She reaches into her bulging satchel and pulls out her present, propping it against the wall across from Jenny's door. Vastra grins again and assuring everything is in place for Jenny to find in the morning, the reptilian woman promptly retreats to her bedroom upstairs. 

Vastra is awoken two hours later by a loud shriek that undoubtedly belongs to Jenny. Not bothering to change out of her nightshift but still managing to grab a sheathed katana from off of the mantle, she is downstairs in a flash. 

Jenny looks up as Vastra silently enters the servant's quarters. The girl is obviously shaken. 

When she can detect no present danger Vastra finally cautions a whispered, "My dear what is wrong?". 

Jenny gives her mistress an exasperated look and waves her hands at the severed head sitting on the carpeted floor, "Ma'am I-" There is a sudden change in her expression as she makes the connection between the display at her feet and the figure standing in front of her. 

"You are displeased," says Vastra flatly. 

" 'Displeased?!'," Jenny's voice becomes shrill again, " 'course I'm displeased! Are you mad?! What did we agree on 'bout bodies in the 'ouse?! I assume that meant the parts too! _Displeased?!_ What else you s'pposed ta be when you wake up to a BLEEDIN' 'EAD gettin' blood and fluids and God knows what else all over the carpet?!" 

Vastra shrugs sheepishly. "I would take it as a sign of affection." Jenny turns to her with a horrified face and looks like she wants to strangle the Silurian. 

Vastra tries to explain but Jenny is having none of it. Jenny doesn't care that out of the men that attacked her the night they met, this was the last one who had escaped the scene. Jenny doesn't care about Vastra's protective abilities as a potential mate. Jenny doesn't care about _stupid lizards and their stupid ways of doin' things- we can talk about this later, jus' get that nasty thing out of the 'ouse!_

\--- 

"Perhaps I was too foreword," Vastra mutters to herself as she dumps Jenny's gifts into the into the river. 


	2. Changes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took forever- I had to think up a good way to start it back up again and that took a while since I knew it had to be primarily expository. It's more internal dialogue-y than I expected and will probabl less formulaic than I intended. 
> 
> Your comments are what really motivated me to keep up this fic ("Well if they like it, I'll do another chapter maybe, eventually...") Thank you! I'm having troubles finding a link to that original interview but if I find it, I'll be sure to post it in the comments.
> 
> Anyway, without further ado, here's the next chapter- it's a little bit long. A third will be up shortly:

Since first living under the same roof together (first in a small flat, then on Paternoster Row), the relationship between Madame Vastra and Miss Jenny Flint had subtly shifted from a situation between an employer and her maid to that of two very good friends in only the course of a few short years. Neither of them had recognized the shift until it was mentioned very briefly and very politely by Inspector Abberline.  


They were having early morning tea (very early morning) in the solarium after a long night’s chase had sort itself into in another cracked case. Thirteen years at Whitehall and Abberline was still puzzled by the nature of the Yard’s most mysterious investigator.  


“If you do not mind me saying so, Madame, but I noticed that you speak to your maid in a, er, rather forward manner." He stuttered and muttered in away that implied that he was trying to ask, "What exactly is the nature of your relationship?”  


Vastra and Jenny stared at each other briefly- Jenny’s face flushing red.  


Vastra only shrugged after a moment’s thought, “Why shouldn’t I be good friends with my most trusted assistant, Inspector?”  


Abberline had made a vague gesture that indicated that he would not say another word about the matter. Jenny coughed and made to pour more tea.  


\- - -  


In time another shift occurred. Jenny had sprained her ankle while attempting to apprehend two burglars one night and was not allowed to join Vastra on the streets until she was fully recovered. Jenny, ever stubborn, of course protested.   


“I’m fine ma’am!”   


“Jenny hopping about on one foot is no way to do anything,” Vastra had argued, “The house can stand to not be spotless for a few days, now please sit down and keep your foot elevated.”  


 

The next night Vastra left to finally catch the thieves. After successfully handing in the criminals to the police, she had hailed a cab to take her back to Paternoster Row. The churchyard of St. Paul's was in sight from the window when the entire carriage lurched and shook. Vastra looked out onto the street to see what had startled the horses. "It' just appeared out of no where!" shouted the cab driver. In the middle of the road was a blue wooden box with the words "Police Box" written across the top. Vastra paid off the cab driver and went to investigate the familiar object. A door opened. For the next three weeks, no one in London- with the exception of Jenny, who later that night received a letter in a mysterious blue envelope, slipped under the back kitchen door- heard a word from Madame Vastra.  


Vastra and the Doctor travelled to Ancient Egypt to solve a mystery involving tombs, mummies that turned out to be androids, and abandoned Silurian technology. She spent what seemed to be four sleepless days of plunging blades into an absurd amount of robots, dealing with her people’s past mistakes, and even almost had a brief stint as a minor deity (though the Doctor quickly closed that ploy before her ego could get the best of her). When it was all said and done and Ancient Egypt was saved ("Well, as much as it could be-" Vastra had brooded on the trip back to Victorian London), the Doctor dropped Vastra off in the solarium of 13 Paternoster Row, much to the shock of Jenny, ankle long since healed, who upon seeing her dear friend, wrapped her arms around Vastra and buried her face in her shoulder. Vastra was taken aback, unsure of how to handle the embrace.  


“A joy to see you too, Jenny dear.“  


Jenny pulled back, her face shifting from relief, to a brief state of calm curiosity, then her brows furrowed, face tightening with anger.  


“Where the _hell_ were you?!”  


“I thought my letter explained it- I was in Egypt- well, not our Egypt, another Egypt- I had written that I would be back before the week was out.”  


“Ma’am you’ve been gone for three weeks!”  


Vastra scowled and turned to the spot where the T.A.R.D.I.S. had stood. Goddess knew what Jenny had thought of her unannounced absence.  


“I was not aware that I had been away so long," she turned back to Jenny, "I suppose I should have known and was remiss to forget the Doctor’s ever discordant relationship with time. It was out of my control.” Jenny’s anger faded and Vastra knew she knew it to be true. “I appreciate your worry though, dear. Can you bear to forgive me?”  


Jenny sighed and embraced Vastra again, who returned it the gesture this time and, breathing in finally, felt the relief of being home. That’s when Vastra sensed it.  


Something had shifted while she was away, or perhaps it had happened before she left and she had to be gone for a period of time to notice it. It lingered in the air and in Vastra's mind even as Jenny parted from their embrace and walked away to gather the mail and messages that Vastra had missed in three weeks. It would be imperceptible to any ordinary human, even to Jenny, whom Vastra had long considered “no ordinary human”- which is what troubled Vastra the most, because it was so completely sudden and drastic to her in this moment: Jenny’s scent has changed.  


The scent that Vastra was so certain she could pick out in any given crowd, that she had followed countless times on the London streets at night, that came each day with her morning tea and breakfast. Perhaps it changed a while ago but the difference was certainly apparent now. Even as the days passed and life at Number 13 resumed in its normal chaotic manner Vastra found herself fixated on the enormity of it. _Jenny's scent_ \- There’s a few more pheromones now, a few more heartbeats- it was still Jenny at the core but- oh- loyal, lovely, _Jenny_ fancied her and now that Vastra was focusing her attention on Jenny's scent she could focus on Jenny's mannerisms and actions and by goddess there's nothing to tell her otherwise! Nothing, that was, besides Jenny herself.  


Vastra was determined not to pry- Jenny had to discover and state her feelings on her own terms and Vastra was certainly willing to reciprocate them. Vastra was not known for her patience however, and after a few months of waiting for Jenny's confessions she wondered if there wasn't a way to speed along the process. She did not know the courtship rituals of humans all too well, but she did know the ways of her own people, and surely some of the acts would add up to much the same sentiment? It was certainly worth a try.  


\---  


Vastra rolls her eyes beneath the shadow of her hood on her walk back from the river.  


Too forward? Oh dear goddess, she had forgotten how sensitive these Victorians were to social protocol. It was a good idea at the time- in the heat of the batttle- realizing exactly who she had caught and, being raised in a warrior society, understanding the meaningfulness of whose head she’d come into possession of. She had wanted to give Jenny a token of her affection, something that would make Jenny think “Oh, that’s wonderful! Thank you for returning my feelings ma’am!”  


Vastra bristles and reminds herself not to make such quick decisions of the heart in the middle of a brawl. This wasn’t Silurian society. This may have been the same land she grew up in, but it was a strange and different culture all together. She pulls her cloak tighter around her and thought of Jenny’s reaction that morning. In all those month’s since Vastra’s realization, Jenny hasn’t said a word about the matter. Perhaps she is just shy. Or perhaps she actually doesn’t feel a thing at all towards Vastra at all. Perhaps Vastra’s senses have been off on her arrival from Egypt- time travel might do that. But Vastra is always so certain of her own senses. They had not failed her in the last several months.  


Vastra flicks her tongue out very quickly into the cold December morning. She still smells the metallic sting of the cold, the thick black coal smoke blending with the flat grey clouds overhead, the grime of the cobbles filled with the smell of unbathed humans and the manure and stress of overworked horses- yes it is still London in the winter as she remembers it- at least that hadn’t changed.  



	3. First Interim

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize again for taking forever. I had this chapter all written out when I posted the last one, but then I thought "Oh, I won't post it immediately" and then I forgot about it until I was going through the computer file where I keep all my fic. Sorry for that. Don't expect chapter four anytime soon (though I am getting more and more ideas of how it could go), I'm pretty busy with college at the moment. We'll see what happens.

When Vastra returns to the house she finds Jenny downstairs at the kitchen table setting breakfast out for the two of them.

They sit at the table in awkward silence. Vastra reads the post and flips through the paper. Jenny works on balancing the ledger. Finally Jenny’s scribbling finishes and Vastra puts down the news. They look at each other for a brief moment.

“I’m sorry for yellin’ at you earlier,” Jenny says folding her arms. “I’m not accustomed to findin’ body parts at my door.” 

“I should be the one apologizing dear, I was not considering the, ah, cultural differences at play when I put it there.”

Jenny gives a pointed look. It seems that she is doing her best not to let a smile peek out of her thinned lips but Vastra sees the flash in her eyes. Vastra only smiles back before taking a sip of the pigs blood that's been poured out for her and setting the glass on the table with some sense of accomplishment.

“Well then, will you be joining me tonight?”

“Excuse me?” Jenny flushes. Vastra grins at the reaction.

“There have been reports of strange flashing lights over the British Museum and several guardsmen have claimed to have seen a few objects levitate in their cases. We’ve been requested to investigate tonight. What do you say? Up for another adventure?” 

“As always,” says Jenny, standing up to clear the table.


End file.
